Samantha Swart won 2nd Place in the Middle School category of the Make Kindness Go Viral! contest on January 27 with her pencil-on-paper tonal drawing, “Fulfilling Kindness.” The award was announced at the 2022 United in Kindness symposium on bullying prevention sponsored by the Tompkins County Bullying Prevention Task Force.

Samantha’s artwork is full of examples of kindness, such as offering support, helping someone up, or even just a friendly wave. The DeWitt Middle School student explains that the steps in her drawing represent obstacles to overcome. And the hearts represent kindness being shared.
Samantha believes that by sharing kindness we can all overcome our obstacles and reach our goals.
One of the judges was extremely impressed by the specificity the artist gives to the experience of kindness—presenting kindness through activity and moving it beyond the conceptual. Another judge commented, “I really like how there are so many levels of different people doing different things that help humanity!”
Contestants were invited to submit an original poster or social media graphic, created in any art medium, illustrating kindness.
Contest awardees receive gift cards from Michael’s art supply store and heart symbols donated by Be Kind Ithaca.
The symposium and contest were made possible in part through grants from the Tompkins County Youth Services Department and The Sophie Fund.
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